This started out seeming like most all the YA paranormal books I've read lately. Not quite sure when that changed.
Maya is not exactly someone you warm up to quickly. She seems nice, but kind of aloof. She is unforgiving, but never in a mean way. At first you think it is caused by a recent emotional trauma, but as the book progresses, you realize that she has always been like that. At 16, some of those "quirks" can be called immaturity. However, her parents often treat her as if she were much older.
Daniel is an enigma. Not quite sure what is going on with him. He is very protective of Maya, and we get hints of special "abilities", but nothing is ever spelled out. Still not quite sure...
Rafe, the bad boy. New to the community. No one knows much about him or his sister. They live in an isolated cabin with only a generator for electricity. He flirts with all the girls, but never follows thru.
The story really picks up around the halfway point. Rafe finally lets Maya get to know the "real" boy. A reporter comes to town supposedly to find out how the kids feel about living in such a secluded area. There is a murder - or maybe it is just the local cougars.....
I have so many questions.....but I can't ask them here without spoiling the book. SIGH.....
Maya is not exactly someone you warm up to quickly. She seems nice, but kind of aloof. She is unforgiving, but never in a mean way. At first you think it is caused by a recent emotional trauma, but as the book progresses, you realize that she has always been like that. At 16, some of those "quirks" can be called immaturity. However, her parents often treat her as if she were much older.
Daniel is an enigma. Not quite sure what is going on with him. He is very protective of Maya, and we get hints of special "abilities", but nothing is ever spelled out. Still not quite sure...
Rafe, the bad boy. New to the community. No one knows much about him or his sister. They live in an isolated cabin with only a generator for electricity. He flirts with all the girls, but never follows thru.
The story really picks up around the halfway point. Rafe finally lets Maya get to know the "real" boy. A reporter comes to town supposedly to find out how the kids feel about living in such a secluded area. There is a murder - or maybe it is just the local cougars.....
I have so many questions.....but I can't ask them here without spoiling the book. SIGH.....
Serena stood on the rock ledge twenty feet above the lake, singing in a voice known to bring tears to the eyes of everyone who heard it.
This is the first book in the Darkness Rising series. The first sentence of the book led me to believe that the supernatural powers would involve a siren. Not true! As least not yet. The small town of Salmon Creek is located on Vancouver Island. It boasts a grand total of about 200 residents. The town is owned by the St. Cloud Corporation which has a medical research facility on site. Everyone in town was handpicked by the St. Clouds to live and work there.
Sixteen year old Maya moved to Salmon Creek when she was five after her dad was hired as the park ranger/game warden. She rescues and rehabilitates animals from the surrounding forest. Big cats in particular seem to gravitate towards her. Maya refuses to believe that her friend Serena accidentally drowned. An unusual birthmark and uncertainty regarding her biological family lead her on a quest for answers.
Rafe is the resident bad boy that recently moved to Salmon Creek. He attempts to get close to Maya because he knows something about her past that she needs to know.
I found the set up of the town to be a bit creepy. The corporation approves or disapproves who lives there. Each of the teenagers has a yearly physical with a visiting doctor that involves "vaccines". Big red flags as to their true identity!
The teenagers are well written and experience the usual angst. I like Maya's friend Daniel who also arrived in Salmon Creek at age five. He is her biggest supporter and greatest champion. The birthmark was a huge clue to Maya's true self.
The story ends with a cliffhanger which normally drives me nuts!! I was not terribly annoyed by this one. It actually makes me want to read the next book fairly soon to see where the story is going.
I enjoy Kelley Armstrong's world building in her other series and look forward to learning more about Salmon Creek.
This is the first book in the Darkness Rising series. The first sentence of the book led me to believe that the supernatural powers would involve a siren. Not true! As least not yet. The small town of Salmon Creek is located on Vancouver Island. It boasts a grand total of about 200 residents. The town is owned by the St. Cloud Corporation which has a medical research facility on site. Everyone in town was handpicked by the St. Clouds to live and work there.
Sixteen year old Maya moved to Salmon Creek when she was five after her dad was hired as the park ranger/game warden. She rescues and rehabilitates animals from the surrounding forest. Big cats in particular seem to gravitate towards her. Maya refuses to believe that her friend Serena accidentally drowned. An unusual birthmark and uncertainty regarding her biological family lead her on a quest for answers.
Rafe is the resident bad boy that recently moved to Salmon Creek. He attempts to get close to Maya because he knows something about her past that she needs to know.
I found the set up of the town to be a bit creepy. The corporation approves or disapproves who lives there. Each of the teenagers has a yearly physical with a visiting doctor that involves "vaccines". Big red flags as to their true identity!
The teenagers are well written and experience the usual angst. I like Maya's friend Daniel who also arrived in Salmon Creek at age five. He is her biggest supporter and greatest champion. The birthmark was a huge clue to Maya's true self.
The story ends with a cliffhanger which normally drives me nuts!! I was not terribly annoyed by this one. It actually makes me want to read the next book fairly soon to see where the story is going.
I enjoy Kelley Armstrong's world building in her other series and look forward to learning more about Salmon Creek.
